Fanboy
by hawkeyesbutt
Summary: Loki Laukauff has a huge crush on the lead singer in The Avengers, Tony Stark. How will he react when he finds out his idol and the reason for his life is not all he cracked up to be? Warning: mentions of self-harm and suicide, later on sexual themes. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Loki stared at the magazine in front of him. He ran his hand over the page, excitement growing in his stomach. He reread the article several times, his eyes attacking the picture in between. The reason was simple: The Avengers were coming to England and Loki Laukauff was their biggest fan. Loki bit his lip with excitement, his fingers stroking across their lead singers face. Tony Stark. Loki glanced up from the magazine to look around his room at his posters. On every wall, at least 2 of the posters contained Tony Stark. He was Loki's idol, his celebrity crush; although it was a lot more than that. Loki had dedicated his life to this man, a man who was older than him by 4 years. He had seen the Avengers in concert twice, earning enough money from his job to get a ticket and get to America to see them. They had never performed in Europe before. Loki squealed with excitement this time, unable to contain himself. He glanced over at his ticket for their UK concert in London, his stomach doing little flips.

"What's with the weird noises? You sound constipated or something," Darcy waltzed into his room, looking around it for something.

Loki sighed. His hand left the magazine. "You wouldn't understand, dear sister. The Avengers are coming to England."

Darcy laughed. "Oh, that band that you're obsessed with? Whatever, big brother. Also, mum wants to talk to you. She's said it was good news." She continued to search his room with her eyes.

Loki rolled his own. His mother always said it was good news just so he would come and talk to her. The older brother sprung to his feet, clutching his magazine as he ushered his younger sibling out of his room. Loki was 19; 3 years older than his sister Darcy. He was back at home in his Christmas break from University, after starting his first year there studying English Literature and Creative Writing. His sister had ridiculed him for it, but he brushed it off, un-phased by her insults. He was interested in it, what could he say? Loki looked down at the article again. His eyes caught a sentence said by the guitarist Thor, "_It'll be fun touring in Europe, especially England. My mother is coming with us._" Loki continued to walk downstairs, finding his own mother in the kitchen.

"Hello." Loki said, sitting in the seat opposite her. He pulled his thin, loose jumper sleeves over his fists on instinct. His mother was a pale woman with dark eyes and long dark hair. Loki had the same features, except more masculine. Darcy was inevitably the same, except her face was less angled and more curved, she had black-rimmed glasses and had died her hair dark red. Loki couldn't deny that his mother was beautiful even at her age - which he wouldn't mention for fear of being chucked out - and the soft smile hung on her lips when he entered.

"Hello, Loki. I have the most fantastic news for you."

Loki raised an eyebrow. He chucked his magazine gently on the table, still open on the page of the interview. Loki's mother glanced down at it, her grin widening. "Go on, mother." Loki urged.

"My sister - your aunt - is coming to visit."

"The American one?" Loki said, standing up. He wasn't sure why this was so fantastic. He didn't know his aunt too well; she lived in America but his mother would talk about her all the time. He walked over to the fridge to look for food.

"Yes - who else?" She laughed. Loki's mother had the most beautiful laugh; it was a piece of music, if nothing else. "My point is, she has a son. A wonderful son who plays in a certain band."

Loki turned away from the fridge to stare at her, unsure of what she was telling him. A smile settled over her lips. "His name is Thor Odinson."

Loki's mouth fell open and he didn't know how to close it. He slammed the fridge door shut and jumped back into his seat at the kitchen table. He glanced back at the interview again, at the line he had picked out before. _'My mother is coming with us'_ it had said. "Oh. My. God." Loki whispered.

"I know," his mother giggled back. "You know this means you'll get to meet him? Not only him, but the rest of the band? They're all staying here, in this house, while in England."

"I get to... I get to meet… Tony Stark?" Loki breathed out. There was an ecstatic gleam to his eyes, a brilliant smile across his face.

"Yes." His mother answered. She watched her son dance around the kitchen, before he lent down to hug and kiss her cheeks.

"You are the best mother in the world, do you know that?" He said, before planting a kiss on both of her cheeks and skipping away. She grinned after him.

Loki ran back upstairs, his mind racing. He pulled out his phone with shaking fingers, running a hand threw it slick, long, black hair. He saw Darcy walk in again, looking for something. He glared at her. "Darcy, go away. I need to make an important phone call."

She raised an eyebrow. "By that you mean Natasha, right?"

"Precisely." She rolled her eyes at him. "Oh don't give me that, just because you have a blatant crush on her."

She stared at him, her mouth open in shock. "I am not! I'm not the gay one in this family, Loki!" She said, her face getting redder every second.

Loki smirked. "I'll tell her you said hi and want to get in her pants." He started dialling, but was not anticipating his sister's attack. She jumped on his, clasping her hands over his mouth as it started ringing. "You say _anything_ to her and honestly swear to god I will show Tony Stark pictures of you in compromising poses." Loki raised an eyebrow.

"Nice try. He'll see those poses anyway; one way or another."

Darcy pulled off of him. "That's disgusting, Loki," she said, glaring at him. "Just, don't say anything to Natasha, alright?"

_"Don't say what to me?" _A voice from the phone said.

Darcy's eyes widened and she stared at Loki pleadingly. He chuckled. "Nothing, Nat. You'll find out in time. This is way more important," He said, his eyes glistening again. Darcy mouthed _thank you _before leaving the room and shutting the door.

_"What happened now? Who punched you?" _

Loki laughed. "No one did. My mother just gave me news."

_"You don't have chlamydia?" _

"What? No- shut up! I don't. I'm clean as a whistle, you sneaky bitch."

She giggled down the phone. _"So, what's the news?"_

"You know how The Avengers are coming to England?"

_"Yeah. Oh my god, I've been listening to their newest album constantly lately, I'm so excited to see them live again!"_

"Well, get this." He paused. "You might want to sit down for this."

He heard some shuffling before she replied. _"Okay, I'm sat down."_

"My mother is the sister of the mother of the guitarist Thor. THOR. IS. MY. _COUSIN_."

_"WHAT-"_

"That's not all, my brilliant best friend, oh no."

_"TELL ME."_

"He will be STAYING. IN MY HOUSE. WHILE HE'S IN ENGLAND."

_"What?! No way! You have to let me stay over! Let me!"_

"That's still not all."

_"Oh my god. How can there possibly be more?"_

"Are you ready for this?"

_"Yes, Loki."_

"Don't shit yourself, okay?"

_"LOKI. SPIT IT OUT." _

"The whole band is staying here. Including..." He took a deep breath. "Tony Stark."

He heard screams from the other side of the phone._ "WHAT ABOUT CLINT?" _

"Yes, even Clint-"

The screaming continued and they spent all evening talking about The Avengers, fangirling over their favourite band and anticipating their visit in less than two weeks.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**** Chapters are gonna start getting longer. Hope you enjoy this one, I got a bit stuck on how to continue from the first chapter but we got there eventually, eh? Anyway... Enjoy! ~**

* * *

The next day, Loki took the tube into London town centre. He had arranged to meet up in with Natasha and Peter to discuss our shared favourite band The Avengers and to tell Peter the news. Loki stepped off the tube wearing his ridiculously tight ripped jeans and his dark green holey jumper that hung off of his thin frame. On his feet were black converse, narrowly choosing them over his favourite high-heeled boots. His black hair had been pulled back into a pony tail and he wore guyliner on his lower eyelid. He scratched his painted black fingernails with one hand as he typed out a quick text to Natasha. Once he left the tube station, exiting up the pile of steps, he looked around and spotted a flash of curly red hair. He smiled and walked over, pulling the small Russian woman into a hug. She hugged him back, smiling.

"Hey bastard," she said, pulling away, still smirking. She wore a black leather jacket over a red t-shirt with a spider on it, along with some faded blue jeans. Loki smirked back.

"Seen our favourite brainiac yet?"

"Nope, but you know what he's like. He just doesn't understand London."

Peter Parker, a casual American exchange, was doing a year of university in England before heading back to America to continue his study there. He was slightly clumsy, found London confusing and was never on time. Loki poked Natasha as he spotted the American wandering through a crowd of fast-walking people, apologising to some woman for bumping into her. Natasha laughed at called his name, causing him to look up and bump into someone else. When he eventually stumbled his way over to them, he looked exhausted already. "I miss getting to use my skateboard everywhere."

Loki and Natasha laughed. "We have skate parks for a reason. Now, let's go to Starbucks," Loki said, leading them across the road to the nearest Starbucks. They went in and ordered their drinks, waited for them and finally sat down with them in hand.

"So, what's so important that I had to suffer coming through London town?" Peter asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

"The Avengers are in town in a few weeks." Natasha butted in. Her eyes gleamed along with her smile, putting Peter on edge slightly.

He grinned back, all the same. "I know that, I'm seeing them with you in concert," He took another sip. Loki exchanged glances with Natasha and they smiled at each other. Peter raised an eyebrow at them both. "What? What am I missing? You're not planning on going without me, are you?"

Loki chuckled softly. "Nothing like that."

"Then what?" He took another sip of his coffee.

"I'm meeting them," Loki said suddenly. He dodged out of the way as Peter spat his drink out.

"What?!" He gasped, ignoring the stares he got from everyone in the café.

"Not only that, they're staying in my house," He said, suppressing his excitement.

"Why?! If you're playing a trick on me again Loki, so help me I will-"

"I'm not. My mother informed me yesterday that Thor is my cousin and her sister who lives in America is coming with The Avengers to the UK, so they're staying in at my house," Loki full on grinned now. His excitement had not died down since yesterday.

Peter stared at Loki, shock embedded in his face. "C-Can I meet them?" He said quietly.

Loki smirked darkly. "For a price." He watched Peter's face turn from shock to discomfort, and Loki laughed. "I'm joking, Peter. Of course you can." Peter breathed a sigh of relief, silently thanking god he wouldn't have to do one of Loki's horrific dares.

"Who's your favourite?" Natasha asked Peter. "Because, just saying, Clint is mine."

Peter cleared this throat. "Um, seeing as I'm straight..."

"Oh come on Peter, you must have a 'man-crush' on one of them." Loki said, rolling his eyes at the words.

Peter laughed. "Okay, so I think Bruce is pretty cool. Like, he's a scientist AND he plays keyboard in a famous band. He makes science look cool."

Natasha rolled her eyes. "You and science, jeez," she muttered. Peter grinned at her, taking a sip of the remainder of his drink.

"Obviously there's no point in asking who Loki's favourite is." Peter chuckled.

"What do you mean?" Loki furrowed his brow.

"I mean, you spend just about every waking moment drooling over Tony Stark."

Loki faked a hurt expression. "I do not drool!"

"Yeah you do, Lokes." Natasha edged in, smirking at him.

Loki scowled and folded his arms across his chest. "Whatever. The point is, Tony Stark will be in my house. I'll get to talk to him. I'll be in the same room as him at some points. And Thor is my cousin!" Loki squealed, keeping the volume down at the same time. Natasha smirked and drank her coffee and Peter sat daydreaming about Bruce Banner.

* * *

Anthony Edward Stark opened his eyes to find a woman in his arms. He winced, sighing to himself. He looked over at his phone, pressing a button to light it up and see the time. _3 A.M._ He carefully removed himself from under the woman's grasp, moving out from the bed sheets and finding some boxers to slip on. He ran a hand through his short dark brown hair and walked out of his room into his huge kitchen/living room. "Jarvis, lights." The room lit up and he walked over to the bar to pour himself a drink.

_"Having trouble sleeping, sir?"_ The invisible voice asked.

Tony laughed bitterly. "You could say that," He sighed, taking a swig of his beverage. He ran a hand through his hair again, nervously. "Fucks sake," he muttered. "Every time I… I don't understand anymore. I don't even enjoy sex with women anymore. All they do is lay there while I do the work and they moan and mutter their disgusting words in my ear, I fucking hate it." He walked over to look out the large window facing out across the city.

_"Then why do you continue to do so, sir? Are you considering the fact you may be homosexual?"_ The voice asked.

Tony put his face in his hands. "I'm known for being a ladies man. A playboy. Not… Well, gay." He flinched at the word. "I can't be… Like that. I have a reputation to keep up. I'm famous, for fucks sake; do you know the shit I'll get for being… it?"

_"Sir, I am aware that on a number of occasions you have described yourself as, I quote, 'not giving a fuck about what other people think'. Is that no longer true?"_

Tony considered. "That's different. I don't care if people are calling me a sell out or hating on our music, but this… This is…"

_"I fail to see how this differentiates from those. You can accept that some of your produce is poor but you cannot accept a part of you?"_

"Since when did you get so intelligent?" Tony asked thin air, laughing slightly. "I don't remember making you so clever about these sort of things."

_"I am assured that you must have entered that into my circuit board whilst intoxicated."_

"Probably. I should probably cut back on this stuff." Tony said, gesturing to his drink. Ignoring his own statement, he chugged the rest down in one and set the glass down on the coffee table. "Hmm. Maybe not." He looked back at the door leading to his bedroom and made a face. "I'm going down to the workshop."

He stepped down the long white spiral until he found himself outside a wall of glass, separating him from the other room. He typed the code into the keypad beside the door and then pushed the door open. He immediately started walking towards his prized possession, an electric red and gold guitar. He picked it up tenderly, sliding his fingers over the body of it and smiling as his fingers crossed over the strings. He plugged in the wire connecting it to the amplifier and then turned that on. He then set it aside as he sat down at his cluttered desk, reaching for a new piece of paper and a pen. He was sick of all these emotions cluttering up his brain; he just needed to vent them out in song.

_"She's so gorgeous_

_She's so pretty _

_But nothing feels the same,_" he sang quietly, writing the words down before picking his guitar up again. He played a few notes out alongside it, finding the ones that fit and then noting them down underneath the words.

_"He's so quiet and so witty_

_and he takes my breath away_

_I'm so confused,_" he paused again to write and strum.

_"She's got everything _

_A man could ever ask for _

_but when our bodies crash together _

_I can't take this fucking mixture anymore,_" the strumming changed into a real melody.

"_We're opposites, _

_We're supposed to be attracting _

_But for some reason _

_I'm drawn to him _

_And he's so fucking distracting _

_His big glowing eyes _

_And his pale skin is completely overwhelming,_" Tony sang.

_"Oh, the things I'd like to do_

_To help me realise that I don't want you._" He paused when he heard the keypad being pressed into. He quickly wrote the lyrics down and shoved them away under some other papers before turning to see his redheaded manager walking towards him, clipboard in hand, ear piece clipped on. "Hey Pep," Tony said neutrally.

She glared at him. "Have you started packing yet?"

He tilted his head to one side, confusion obvious on his features. "For what?"

"The UK tour? We're leaving for the plane in 3 hours. I came to see if you had remembered or even packed. Apparently neither."

Tony smirked. "Well thank the imaginary man in the sky I have_ you_ to keep me in check."

Pepper rolled her eyes before her eyes targeted in on the piece of paper Tony was shoving away and the guitar in his hand. "Composing?"

Tony rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Yeah."

"Can I see?" She asked, stepping closer.

Tony snatched the paper to his chest, unsure whether to talk to her about his problem or not. He probably should, considering she was the closest he had to a best friend that wasn't a band member and she was his manager. "Urm - it's not done yet. It's... A work in progress. You can't see."

Pepper raised an eyebrow, surprised at how Tony had reacted. Normally he would sing her the song himself before telling her that he knew it was amazing already and thanks for agreeing before she had even uttered a word. "Come on, Tony. What's it about?"

Tony sighed. "You'd probably find out eventually." He muttered. Pepper narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Tony stood up and paced around the room, avoiding looking at Pepper. "I'm a playboy right? I sleep with women all the time, in fact there's one upstairs sleeping." He glanced at her then. "Also, could you get rid of her when you can?" He then turned back to pacing and completing his anecdote. "But recently something's been slightly askew and I wasn't sure what. I pick the most attractive women possible but... They don't..." He gestured to his crotch as if that showed the answer.

Pepper nodded slowly, starting to figure it out. "So... You're not attracted to females anymore, is that what you're saying?"

Tony stared at the floor, rubbing his chest. He sighed again and nodded.

"How long has this been going on?" She asked, taking a seat on an extra stool by the desk.

"About a year," he murmured. Pepper's eyes shot up to his.

"A year?! That's not recent!" She said, frowning. "Well, what do you want me to do about it? Tell you you're gay? Tell you you're not?"

"I was wondering how it would affect my status." Tony asked, hating how he sounded like he cared about what people thought of him.

Pepper considered. "Well, let's see. I doubt it would cause people to stop listening to your music, if that's what you think. Your audience is mainly teenage girls and guys. If anything, you coming out of the closet would probably help your band. Teenagers also go through the sexuality phase, right? You'll be a supporting member of LBGT, it'll be brilliant!" Pepper exclaimed, standing up and grinning.  
Tony rolled his eyes but smiled too. He was glad - though he'd never admit it - that Pepper had accepted him straight away and even used it to their advantage. That was so Pepper.

"When do you want to come out? Who do you want to tell first? Friends first, I suppose. Family-" she glanced at Tony and saw his expression. "Not family, obviously. Ooh! I can get you an interview with NME while we're in London. Perfect. They've been gagging for one for ages; why not let London know first?"

Tony let her ramble on to herself, setting herself tasks as she whisked around the work shop, writing down notes on her clipboard before leaving to get rid of his unwanted company. Her parting words were, "Have your bags packed in an hour or _I will kill you with my bare hands,_" before almost leaping with joy at the new inspiration that had come to light. Tony laughed and sat down at his desk again, promptly picking up his guitar and continuing writing his song.


	3. Chapter 3

"Tony!" A booming voice called and the lead singer turned to see his drummer waving at him, about 10 feet away. He swiftly walked towards him, clasping their hands together. Tony grinned up at the big guy.

"Heya, Thor," he said. "So I heard we're staying with your aunt, huh?"

"Yes; she has an extraordinary house with several rooms she wished to put to good use," he paused. "Also mother wanted to see her."

Tony chuckled at the fact that his friend still got bossed around by his mother and had even persuaded him into taking her on tour with them. Tony opened the boot of his car and lifted out his suitcase and guitar case, handing them to some guy who was evidentially putting them on the plane. Tony held his guitar close and refused to let it be chucked into the plane and risk damaging it. He and Thor stepped on, looking around the empty plane full of around 12 plush seats and bit his lip.

"Oh god, where the hell do I sit?" He said, exaggerating the fake panic in his features.

Thor beside him laughed and sat down in the middle row, putting his feet up on the seats in front. Tony eventually sat down a row behind and opposite Thor, yawning as he realised he hadn't actually gotten much sleep. He watched out the window as his back up singer and guitarist Steve got out of his own car and onto the plane. Steve smiled at them both, sitting in front of Tony.

"Hey guys," Steve said. "You excited?"

"For what?" Tony asked, raising an eyebrow. "It's just England. Tea, the queen, monocles, blah-blah-blah. Boring. Not to mention cold and rainy."

Steve frowned. "I've never been to Europe before. It's a new experience for me and I'd appreciate it if you didn't down pour it." He pushed his blonde hair back, making sure it was still in place.

"Whatever," Tony muttered. "Just try not to fall for their accents over there."

There was silence once again as they waited for the other two members to show up, as well as Pepper and some other people, so they could set off. Bruce appeared first, narrowly beating Clint. Bruce shuffled on, taking a seat opposite Tony and taking out a book immediately.

"Hey Brucey," Tony said with a grin. "Whatcha readin'?"

Bruce looked over from his book, raising an eyebrow. "Since when did you care? It's nothing, just The Hobbit."

Tony laughed. "Really? Oh man, you get nerdier every time I see you Bruce, which is a lot."

Bruce rolled his eyes. "At least I'm not an alcoholic," he muttered, returning to his book.

"Hey! I'm not an alcoholic, I just like to forget about my problems as much as possible and it's easiest to do that by drinking." Tony said smugly. "See? Logic, Mr. I've-got-a-doctorate."

"Hardly..." The small man muttered, before someone else burst onto the plane.

"Hey guys," Clint nodded to everyone, grinning like a mad man. "We're going to the UK, bitches!" He said before jumping into a seat behind Tony. "Man, I can't wait. I love England. The chicks there are just-" he pressed his thumb and index finger together and then pressed them to his lips, releasing them again. "Perfection. Wouldn't you say so, Tony?"

Tony went rigid as he faced the excited 20-year-old behind him. "Uh, yeah..." He murmured. "Something like that." Bruce glanced over, noticing how uncomfortable Tony seemed about the subject.

A moment later, their manager Pepper Potts stepped onto the plane and stood before them all. "Okay, so before we set off, Tony needs to tell you all something." Tony whined loudly and slumped in his chair. "You know I'm making you do this so you don't have to do it when we get there and you're arguing in front of our hosts. At least you have 8 hours to work it out between you all." She pulled Tony up and out of his seat and shoved in the front of the plane in front of them all.

Tony sighed and rested his hands on the front two seats. "Here's the thing: I'm gay."

The plane was silent for a moment before Clint kicked the floor. "Fuck!" He said angrily, taking out $100 and giving them to Bruce. "You bastard, Bruce."

"What?" Tony asked confused. He turned to Bruce. "You knew? How did you know?"

Bruce grinned. "I'm observant, that's all. Now I've just won $100. So thanks." He paused. "And it's fine, really. I personally have no problem with it." Tony grinned at him. Clint sat fuming in the corner, but looked up anyway.

"Yeah, I don't mind either. Dudes or chicks, you can fuck whatever." Clint said bluntly, adding a trademark grin to go with it.

"I also do not see a problem with it in the slightest," Thor said, standing up and placing a hand on Tony's shoulder. He smiled at him, his warmth radiating out of him and onto Tony.

Tony finally glanced over at Steve, who looked deep in thought; his hand rose to his chin, his eyes staring into nothingness. Tony's heart beat quickened. "Steve?" He asked, hope for acceptance clear in his voice.

"I don't know," Steve said confusedly, "I-I was raised to... To think that homosexuality is a sin." Tony winced and looked away, anger bubbling inside of him. He knew Steve couldn't help the way he was raised but it still pissed him the hell off that his parents were even like that.

"I fear you must keep your mouth shut when it comes to discussing homosexuality being a sin when we arrive at my aunts," Thor interjected. "My cousin, her son, Loki is gay. He has been bullied for it and I do not think he would enjoy hearing negativity against it." Thor said, his voice controlled with a tiny bit of anger slipping through.

Tony considered for a second. Thor's cousin was gay? _Huh, well how about that._ He turned his attention back to Steve who had continued his earlier statement.

"I didn't say that I thought it was - I said I was raised that way. I care about you Tony, as a friend and I respect your lifestyle. As much as my parents were against it, I have never personally had a problem with it."

Tony mentally did a leap of joy. "Really?" He asked, grinning. Steve nodded. "Thanks buddy. Thanks you guys." Tony headed back to his seat and let Pepper fill them in on the important details.

* * *

It was safe to say that the Laukauff family had a big house. Despite being only the three of them, they had another 6 bedrooms in the house, all with en-suite bathrooms. When Loki's father died, the family were put into shock. They struggled to continue without him there, but after 10 years, they had adjusted. Loki was the adult in the situation, despite being 9 years old. He had cared for his mother and sister, even when they pushed him away sometimes. Before the family man had died, he was one of the richest people in England. His company was booming, he was earning millions every year. He was unfortunately taken by the stress that came with it, causing a heart attack. They had been too late to save him.

They had never moved house; they much preferred to stay where they were, where they felt safe... And now, the house was more than useful. The extra rooms would mean one for each member of the band and Thor's mother. On the day of their arrival, Loki woke up early to get ready. His mother had informed him that they wouldn't even arrive until 5 P.M., but Loki had some preparations to do.

He took a long shower, making sure he was extra clean. He washed his long straight black hair, running his fingers through it as the hot water cascaded down him. He got out finally, finding some clothes to wear. Once he found clean underwear, he looked for jeans. His search was interrupted when a red head barged into his room. She spared him a glance, unbothered by his almost naked appearance and flopped down on the bed. "Hey Lokes," she said, picking up a magazine from the floor.

"Tasha, couldn't you have waited until I actually had clothes on before you barged in?" He sighed. "What if I wasn't even wearing underwear?"

"Then I would see your special place and laugh and then continue to talk to you."

"Hey! My dick is no laughing matter."

Natasha laughed and Loki growled. "Of course, sweet cheeks. Get me a second opinion on your dick and I won't laugh at you about it."

Loki rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, don't you want me to help you find something to wear?" Natasha pointed out.

Loki considered. "Fair enough."

An empty wardrobe of clothes later, Loki and Natasha and picked out a pair of black super skinny jeans, an open green shirt with a grey vest top underneath. On his feet he wore converse, on his arms he wore a couple of dark brown bracelets. Natasha helped him to straighten his hair and flick the ends out in his usual style and he helped her with her make up. "You sure you don't want some? Not even on the circles under your eyes? Or mascara?" Natasha prompted him.

Loki rolled his eyes. "I'd rather not look like a transvestite on my first time meeting Tony Stark."

Natasha laughed at that. "Whatever, Loki. Even though you're normally happy to wear makeup to impress guys." She raised an eyebrow at him.

Loki glanced at her, a smile on his lips. "Tony Stark is more important than any guy."

Natasha stood up after folding her makeup box away and placing it in what she now called "Natasha's space" which was one half of Loki's room. She wanted to be here to meet the Avengers just like Loki, but obviously she couldn't have her own room at his house. She looked around his room.

"Hmm. Don't you think he's gonna feel kinda awkward with all these posters of him?"

Loki glanced around his room. He did have quite a lot... "Shit," he muttered. He went around his room, taking posters down until two remained of The Avengers and Tony Stark.

"Now your walls look unnaturally bare," Natasha commented.

"I have some other posters..." He muttered, before rummaging through his wardrobe again. He pulled out a basket of poster rolls. He grinned. "Thank fuck for that," he said. He passed some to Natasha and together they put them up. He stared back at his walls, smiling as he glanced over the other posters that had joined his wall. He now had a You Me At Six poster, My Chemical Romance poster, Lady Gaga poster ("There is nothing wrong with some Gaga, Natasha") and several others. Once they had redecorated his room, they cleared it of clutter, leaving a few simple clothes on the floor and a messy bed to make him look more like a normal guy than a neat freak. He had changed out of his green shirt, leaving the grey vest and putting his holey green loose-fitting jumper on over the top. By this point, it was 12pm. The Avengers were to arrive in England at 4pm and get to their house at 5. They had a long, painful wait ahead of them.

Natasha begged Loki to practice karate with her but Loki just shook his head, stating he didn't want to get sweaty and have yet another shower. He rolled her eyes, inquiring as to what they could do instead. Loki thought for a minute.

"Listen to The Avengers and relax?" He said, although they both knew neither would be able to relax.

Natasha snorted. "Why don't you do some drawing or something? Hey, you could draw me." She lay across Loki's bed in a suggestive pose, pouting her lips. Loki burst into laughter and agreed. He put his iPhone into his speakers, selecting _The Avengers all albums shuffle_. Natasha sat up into a more natural pose and Loki got his sketchpad and pencils.

After half an hour of Natasha badly singing along to the Avengers while Loki drew her, he paused in his shading and looked up at her, then back at the paper. "Finished," he said, smiling lightly.

She stood up and walked over, glancing over his shoulder. "Wow, that's really good," she muttered, taking in the amount of detail. "Can I see your other sketches?"

Loki obliged and handed the sketchbook over as Natasha sat down again. She shifted through the pages, setting her eyes down on the detailed sketches. The first sketch in his book was of his father, the one after was his mother and then his sister. He had done a few self-portraits but it was mostly other people. Natasha noticed a sketch of their friend Peter, who in the picture was gazing down at the coffee in front of him with a blush on his cheeks and Natasha raised an eyebrow at Loki. Loki peered over at which picture she was looking at. Then he smirked.

"Looks like someone's been paying a bit too much attention to a certain straight friend." Natasha said, accusation clear in her voice.

Loki chuckled. "Not in the slightest, my dear. He refuses to let me draw him so I managed to do it from memory. That was my favourite."

"As I said, someone's playing too much attention." She sighed. "Don't push him over the edge too much, Loki. Flirt at him or whatever but..." She trailed off, looking down at the pictures again.

Loki nodded, a smile still on his lips. "I know, I won't. It's extremely entertaining to see his cheeks light up like that though, you must admit."

Natasha laughed. "Yeah, I guess." She stood up suddenly, placing the sketchbook to the side and taking Loki's hand. He stared in confusion at her but let himself be pulled up. "Come dance with me, I love this song."

As much as Loki protested, he ended up dancing more than Natasha. They had eventually picked up hair brushes and were singing into them while staring at each other seeing who would give up the long note first. Natasha had stopped the note before Loki and he'd ran around his room before jumping on his bed, continuing to sing into the hair brush. Natasha glared at him before laughing and jumped in the bed too.

There was a knock on the door suddenly and Natasha jumped off and turned the music down. Loki told them they could enter and Loki's mother entered. She had an amused smile on her face when she saw Loki on his bed, his face slightly red from jumping about and singing. "They're here."

Loki's mouth fell open and he glanced at the clock on his wall, which read 5:10pm. He stared at his mother, unsure of what to do. Natasha grabbed his am and pulled him down. "Come on, then! Let's go meet them!"


	4. Chapter 4

Tony glanced out the window up at the mansion before them and stepped out of the car. It didn't seem too bad; but he was yet to meet the people who lived inside. Thor was helping his mother out of the limo, taking her arm. Thor's mother glanced up at the mansion and smiled. "Frigga!" They heard as the other band members scrambled out of the car. They looked up to see a dark haired beautiful woman heading towards them, a huge grin on her face. Thor's mother's face lit up even more as she released herself from Thor and ran towards the woman. They joined in a hug, the dark haired woman setting a kiss on her cheek.

"Fárbauti! Thank you so much for letting us stay with you."  
Fárbauti pulled away and waved at the band. "It is no trouble. My son is their biggest fan."  
Thor stepped forward towards his aunt and smiled. "Hello, my name is Thor. It is a pleasure to meet you at last." He held his hand out.  
Fárbauti took his hand and shook it, before pressing a kiss to each cheek. "I am Fárbauti, and the same to you. I have heard a lot about you, undoubtedly from my sister and my son." She chuckled.  
Thor grinned in return. The other members stepped forwards and introduced themselves to her and she gave them the same treatment as Thor.  
When it came to Tony Stark, she kissed his cheeks and pulled back to grin at him. "My son is especially fond of you. Try not to break his heart." She said, chuckling lightly.  
Tony raised an eyebrow. "Especially fond of me?"  
She grinned. "Indeed. He was ecstatic to hear that you'd be staying with us. I shouldn't say any more though; wouldn't want to embarrass him."

She stepped away from Tony and asked them all to follow her inside while the servants took their suitcases inside. They followed her inside and stopped in the living room. She offered them all a seat and a drink before rushing off to inform her son that they were here. In the faint distance of the house, they could hear one of their own songs playing loudly. The music was suddenly turned off and moments later, a pale, lanky, beautiful young man was revealed in the doorway, accompanied by a pretty redhead, about a head shorter than him. They both looked extremely nervous, despite the smiles on their faces. Fárbauti led them in, introducing them.

"This is my son Loki and his best friend Natasha. Loki, this is my sister Frigga and her son Thor, who you indirectly know."  
Loki took his aunties hand and kissed her cheeks before turning to Thor. Thor grinned at him and Loki grinned back. "It's a pleasure to meet you finally," Loki said, putting his hand out. Thor pulled him into an unexpected hug which made Loki explicitly laugh out loud.  
Thor pulled back. "It is a pleasure to meet you too. I am happy to know you are a big fan of our band." Loki's cheeks turned red and he glared accusingly over at Fárbauti.  
"What have you said about me, mother?" He enquired, putting his hands on his hips.  
She grinned and went over to him, putting a hand on his cheek. "Oh nothing, darling. Nothing much, anyway." Her eyes glinted as she looked away for a second at another member of the band and it clicked in Loki's head.  
Loki turned to take in the other band members, breathing in silently. Thor stepped over to him once again.  
"Let me properly introduce you to my band mates." Loki smiled nervously and let Thor take his arm. "This is Steve, Bruce, Clint and Tony." Unexpectedly to Natasha and Fárbauti, Loki stepped towards Bruce first.  
"One of my best friends is obsessed with you. He loves that fact you 'make science look cool'. He's a big nerd." Bruce smiled up at him, amused.  
"Will I get to meet this friend of yours?" He asked.  
"I should think so, I think he'd murder me if I didn't invite him round at some point to meet you," Loki chuckled.

The room was finally alive with conversation and laughter and Loki even noticed Natasha talking to Clint Barton, her own crush. Loki eventually plucked up the courage to speak to Tony, after his mother prodded him for a while. Loki took a deep breath quietly before walking over to him. He couldn't deny that Tony was even more attractive in person; Loki had dreamed of the day he'd be close enough to touch him. Today was his day.  
Loki glanced back at his mother once more as he walked towards Tony Stark. She had turned away from him now, leaving him to his own devices. Tony looked up at him from his phone, raising an eyebrow. The moment Tony's eyes set onto Loki's, Loki felt incredibly vulnerable and exposed. He wished he could turn invisible or not exist. He tried to not have a panic attack when Tony smiled.  
"Hey kid. Nice house you got here," He said, glancing around the room.  
"Thanks... I'm not a kid by the way, I'm 19."  
Tony raised an eyebrow. "Really? You look about 16. Huh, what about that."  
Loki frowned. "I'm not sure whether to be insulted or flattered."  
"I'd go with a bit of both. Anyway, I heard you like my band."  
Loki raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at him. "You heard? From who?"  
"Thor's mum, your mum... Mums, basically." Tony said, taking a sip of his drink that had been brought in by a servant.  
Loki frowned. "What else did my mother tell you?"  
"She said you were fond of me. Which is code for you're obsessed with me, right?"

Loki's cheeks turned pink and he stared at the ground. "Something along those lines."  
Tony chuckled. "Well that's nice to know. I love being loved," he sipped his drink again.  
Loki looked up and rolled his eyes. "Of course you would." He smiled.  
"Oh, and what is that supposed to mean?" Tony questioned playfully.  
"It means you love attention more than anyone else on this planet."  
"Ouch, that hurts my theoretical heart."  
"I'm glad. Someone had to tell you the truth eventually."  
"It seems everyone loves to tell me the truth."  
"Not surprising. I'm sure you'd say anything for attention. What did you plan on throwing at the media next?"  
"Oh, I was just going to mention something along the lines of being gay," Tony replied casually.  
Loki stiffened. "What?" His voice strained.  
"I'm gay now." Tony said, shrugging.

Loki's jaw hardened and he glared at Tony. "Saying you're gay for attention is the worst thing you could possibly do. In fact, it makes me want to punch you. Do you know how fucking hard it is for some people to come out? Do you know what some people have to go through, that people get bullied from it-" Loki looked away, biting his lip from the memories flooding his brain. "Gay people have a hard enough time as it is without you trying to weasel your way into the community and fuck everything up." Loki ran a hand through his hair. "Jeez, can't believe I obsessed over such an arsehole." He gave Tony another upset look and turned away.  
"Wait!" Tony said, pulling on the younger's arm. "I'm not- I'm not saying it for attention, I really am-"  
"Leave it Stark, you're just embarrassing yourself," Loki hissed, pulling his arm free and leaving the room. He went upstairs to his room and lay down on his bed. How could he ever have had feelings for such a wanker? Loki punched his pillows a few times, forcing his tears back.

Half an hour passed and there was a knock on the door. Natasha poked her head round to see Loki sat on his bed holding his sketchpad and a pencil. He was staring into space when she walked over. She glanced down at his paper to see it was still blank. "Loki?"  
Loki glanced over at her, his eyes full of sadness as he rested his head on her shoulder. "I can't believe I got so hung up on that guy."  
"What happened?" Natasha asked quietly.  
"We were just chatting and making jokes about how much he likes attention and- and he said his next stunt would be to tell the media he was gay and I just snapped."  
Natasha looked at the man on her shoulder, concern blazing in her eyes. "What a nob. Maybe he didn't know you were gay."  
"He's been talking to my mother; of course he knows I'm gay."

Natasha laughed softly, wrapping her arms around him. They sat like that for a while. They were only interrupted by a ringing noise indicating that it was dinner time. Natasha pulled away and stood up, giving him her hand. "Come on, Mischief, let's go eat."  
Loki looked at her nervously, unsure if he should be in the same company as that man. "But-"  
"Nope. Come on. I want to talk to Clint some more and I'm not leaving you to wallow up here."  
Loki stood up and they walked down the piles of stairs. "How is it going with him?"  
Natasha's eyes sparkled and her face lit up. "He's better than I ever imagined."

* * *

**A/N:**** Hey guys! I'm really sorry I haven't updated in so long. I've been writing lots for different stories and of course it was Christmas (hope you all had a wonderful time, I got lots of Avengers goodies) but of course my laptop decided to be a dick and freeze every time I went on it, but it seems to have sort of fixed itself now. Hopefully, anyway. I'm currently writing another story which I've been working on for a while now (I'm about half way through it and jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus, it is long) and I'm really excitd to start uploading it soon. Though it'll probably be after January as I have yet MORE exams coming up next month. (And well, the whole year really. BUT THAT DON'T STOP ME, OH NO NO.) Gaaaah, GCSEs are the worst. Don't take Art or triple Science, they ruin your whole life. That reminds me, I need to actually start on my final piece... *goes offtrack* Still, I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and stay tuned for more Fanboy!**

**P.S. On regards to the next chapter, this story will be moved up to M as it will contain mentions of self-harm, suicide, and later on, sexual themes. If you don't want to read that, then be my guest and abandon this story, I won't blame you. We're all friends here, right? Right? No? Okay. I'll leave now.~**


	5. Chapter 5

They entered the dining room, Loki avoiding the gaze of Tony Stark as he entered. Unfortunately, Loki's mother had managed to force them to sit side by side in an attempt to get them talking, unknowing of their last conversation.

Halfway through the meal, Tony tried to apologise for before. "I didn't mean it like that." He said, making Loki turn his head towards him.

"Then what did you mean?" Loki asked in a harsh tone, glaring at the rock star.

"I- for the past year, I've been... In denial. I finally accepted it last night and came out to my manager and band mates, so I do know what it's like to come out to someone." He paused. "I wasn't lying about being gay. I guess it was a stupid thing to say in that context but..."

"So you _are_ gay?"

Tony rubbed the back of his neck, still alien to those words. "Yeah."

Loki narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "I'm sorry, Stark, but I find that hard to believe. You've been with women constantly throughout the year. I don't believe that you're gay." He stood up suddenly. "If you'll excuse me." He graciously walked from the room, heading back to his bedroom.

Tony sighed and moved his food around his plate, suddenly no longer hungry. He could feel a pair of eyes resting on his head and he looked up to see a glaring redhead sat next to Clint. Loki's best friend, Fárbauti had said. _Understandable._ Tony ignored her glares, trying to understand why he cared so much about this other kid's opinion of him. Normally he would have ignored one of his fans getting upset at him over him being an ass; it happened a lot. But this guy? There was something about him that Tony couldn't get enough of. He seemed so skinny it felt like he should be careful when he walked in case he broke. He looked like he could have burst when he was angry at Tony. Tony thought he just looked so... Fragile. His skin was as pale as a china doll's; his full lips were raspberry pink against his skin. His dark hair seemed to flick dangerously around his face and his piercing green eyes... Hang on, what was Tony doing? He had known this guy less than a couple of hours and now he was- what was he doing?

Eventually, everyone turned in for an early night after the long flight. As Tony went up the stairs he noticed his name had been put on one of the doors. He glanced around, seeing the names of his friends on the other doors as well. He sighed, entering his assigned room and sitting down on the bed. He figured he wasn't actually tired yet, so he went for a shower. Once he reappeared, he looked over to the balcony, longing to go out there. He could really do with a drink right now though. Just as he was about to go down to get one, he noticed a small fridge tucked away in the corner. He grinned and headed over, seeing a number of different alcohol bottles in there. Someone must have informed them of his love for the stuff and given him them as a treat. He took out a bottle of what he saw was Baileys, pouring the creamy liquid into a glass. He pulled some sweatpants on and slid open the glass door, heading out onto the balcony. He sipped his drink in silence before hearing another door sliding open. He looked over to see the dark haired mystery boy that intrigued him so much. The boy sighed to himself, putting his head in his hands. Tony realised that he hadn't noticed he was there yet, so he observed. Loki wore no jumper this time, sporting only a small grey vest that clung tightly to his body. Tony finally saw his arms for once and realised that Loki must have had a worse past that he originally thought. His arms seemed to be littered with light pink scars, which stood out under the moonlight. His hair had been pulled back into a pony tail and his face seemed somewhat more hollowed than before. Loki seemed to be having an inside debate with himself, biting his lip and clutching something in one hand.

"No, I can't," he muttered. "I promised Natasha..." Loki sighed and closed his eyes. "She would forgive me, right? Peter will persuade her to..." Loki gingerly opened one palm, opening the small box there and taking out a thin piece of metal which shined in the light. Loki's eyes looked somber as he raised it to his wrist. Tony watched in horror. Tony knew what it was like to feel that low before. He had struggled to handle his own pain in the past and no one had been there to stop him. He wouldn't allow this to happen to Loki.

"Stop," Tony choked out in shock. Loki whipped his head round to Tony' eyes wide in shock and horror. He dropped the blade to the edge of the balcony, stepping backwards.

"What the fuck are you doing there?" Loki hissed, trying to cover his arms.

"I couldn't sleep. I was here first anyway and I wanted to stop you before you did something stupid."

Loki grimaced. "As if you'd understand."

"You think you know me because you've read my interviews but you don't," Tony said calmly. Loki glanced up in confusion. "I know where you're coming from. I've been in this situation. Granted, I uhh, skipped _this_ part, but it still applies. I wish someone had been there to stop me like I'm here to stop you."

Loki blinked a few times, stepping forwards towards him, resting on the balcony ledge. "Tell me about it."

Tony shuffled about, taking a swig of the baileys. "Well, my mother died when I was born and my father thought her death was my fault, basically. He blamed me for it. Because of that, he ignored me most of my life; he didn't take an interest in what I did, didn't come to my baseball matches, didn't even praise me for getting A's all the time. Once I reached 14 something changed. He stopped ignoring me and just started hating me. He told me everything I did was worthless, I was worthless, I was a piece of shit to him. I put up with this until I was 16. By this point I was doing tons of exams so I was heavily stressed, my girlfriend had dumped me brutally for wanting more attention from her, my friends were sick of me and my dad was a dick and a half to me. I lost a lot of sleep and I slipped up on one test; it wasn't even like, a real exam or anything. I failed it all the same and my dad went berserk. He was like, 'see what I mean? What I've told you all these years? You're a worthless, idiotic piece of shit, it's a surprise you haven't topped yourself yet'. I got so angry that I punched him in the face and.. He did a lot worse back. So I ended up covered in blood in my room and I had never felt so hated in my life. So I found a belt and I tied it to the ceiling fan and I make it into a knot and I stood on a stool and slipped it round my throat. Then I kicked the stool away." Tony glanced up at Loki to see his shocked expression, the guilt and sadness in his eyes. "One of the maids heard all my noise and came to check on me not long after and screamed for help, they got me down and I went to hospital. After that, they constantly kept an eye on me. So I found a trick. If you pretend to be happy, they forget you were ever sad." Tony took another gulp of his drink, running a hand through his hair. "So now you know. The only person I've ever told. Weird, huh? You'd think I'd want everyone to know." He laughed bitterly at himself.

Loki was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry." He muttered. "I'm sorry you had to go through that alone." He paused. "In secondary school, I had a friend called Bucky. Well, he was my only friend. I told him everything. One day, I was going through a bad time. I found out I was gay and I took it horrifically badly. I needed support so I confided in him and he took it worse than I did. He leapt away from me like I had a disease and called me filth and then he told the whole school and avoided me for the rest of it. I got bullied constantly, especially this one guy called Thane. He was... He was the worst." Loki whispered the last part, taking a deep breath. "He'd take pictures secretly of the guys in the boys changing room and then put them in my bag and then reveal them to everyone. I got beat up every single day and I had no one left." Loki stared sadly at the ground, remembering how lonely he'd felt.

"What about your family?"

"My mother was still grieving my father. My sister was too young to understand. I couldn't talk to either of them." Loki smiled sadly up at Tony. "I met Peter and Natasha in college. They got me out of my... Bad habit. Sometimes I just can't help myself."

"Is Peter your boyfriend?" The words slipped unconsciously from Tony's mouth before he could stop them.

Loki laughed quietly. "No, Peter is straight."

"Do you... Wish he was?" Tony wasn't quite sure why he was interested but continued to listen as Loki hummed in consideration.

"Not really. I guess... I spent a lot of my time drooling over a particular lead singer in my favourite band to have any real relationships," he grinned at Tony.

Tony grinned back. "I'm honoured to be drooled over by such a cute guy." He looked up at the moon. "I honestly am sorry about how my words came out earlier today. I wasn't thinking. I was told you were gay by Thor but it just slipped my mind. I didn't take into consideration about how it would have affected you."

Loki waved his hand dismissively. "It's alright. I overreacted." He paused. "Still struggling to believe you're gay though."

Tony laughed. "Believe what you want. I'm trusting myself on this one, though."

A light turned on in Loki's room from behind him and Loki turned wide-eyed to see his short tempered best friend. "Uhh... Hey Tash."

The redhead stepped out onto the balcony beside him, her eyes catching the piece of metal glinting in the light on the balcony railing. "You promised," she said, her voice stern.

"I-I didn't do it! Look, I'm clean!" Loki shoved his arms into her face, his expression showing purely anxiety.

Natasha scanned them I've before glaring up at him. "Clean? These ones are days old." She poked at some of the slightly redder scars, making Loki wince. "Why didn't you tell me? I'm your best fucking friend, Loki, you're supposed to tell me when you feel like this-"

"Well, I messed up, okay?"

"Damn right you did!" Natasha sighed, hiding her face with her hands. "I'm disappointed in you, Loki. Don't think I'm not going to tell Peter either, you know what he's like when this happens."

Loki's eyes widened. "Oh god, please don't tell him, please-"

"Loki, just. Ugh," Natasha muttered, glaring at the ground, she turned to head back inside but caught Tony's eyes in the dark. "How long have you been standing there?"

"For the record, I was actually out here first," Tony said, moving back.

Natasha glared at him. "I hope you know that if you're not actually gay I will chop your balls off and wear them as earrings." She turned on her heel, giving Loki another stern glance before shutting the door and going back to bed.

Loki was shaking; his hands balled into fists so hard his knuckles were white. He sucked in a few deep breaths and ran his hand through his hair again. Tony longed to reach out and comfort him, like no one had for him all those years ago.

"You okay?" Tony said quietly. Loki's eyes snapped to his, like he'd forgotten he was there for a moment. His expression fell into a fake smile that Tony knew all too well.

"Yes, of course."

"Don't bullshit, I just watched the whole thing. What will Peter do?" Tony crossed his arms and stared at the younger man.

Loki sighed, resting his head on the railing. "Peter will undoubtedly make it somehow appear like its his fault; crying a lot, screaming and shouting... It doesn't sound so bad, you'd think he was faking it to make me feel bad for doing it but... He's a pretty great actor if he is." Loki laughed bitterly, closing his eyes. He opened them again to glance up at Tony. "I'm glad you're not actually a big a wanker as you seem. I was scared that the only person I'd ever cared about was the hugest bellend who ever existed."

Tony stared at him blankly. "I'm gonna ignore all those English swear words and focus on the stuff I did understand." Loki rolled his eyes. "Okay, so I'm a huge dick. It's only different with you because..." Tony paused, considering his next words, "You're the only fan who actually seems important to me."

Loki looked up at him properly now, his big curious green orbs scanned brown, searching for a lie or a real answer. "I don't understand," he said finally.

Tony sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Neither do I, princess."

Loki snorted. "Princess? Really Anthony?"

"You're like Princess Peach with the whole huge-ass house that may as well be a castle." Tony frowned. "Can't you just call me Tony like everyone else?"

"But I'm not everyone else," Loki said, smiling. Before Tony could respond with how much he hated that name, Loki was heading back inside. "Goodnight Anthony, sweet dreams." The name rolled off his tongue, giving Tony a strange sensation. He shrugged off and headed back inside, shaking his head slightly.


	6. Chapter 6

In the morning, Natasha woke up to see Loki sat in front of the mirror, fully dressed, this time in a denim shirt buttoned all the way to the top and extremely skinny black jeans. His hair was tied in a ponytail and he held in his hand a small tube of mascara, gently applying it to his lashes.

Natasha yawned and slid out of bed, looking in her clothes pile for something to wear. "Good morning," she heard Loki say quietly. She turned to look at him.

"I thought you were too good for make up when Tony was around?" She murmured, still rummaging through clothes.

"Yeah well, I felt like it," he said, smiling as he now lifted up his eyeliner pencil.

Natasha found some clothes and headed to the bathroom. She stopped by the door and looked back at him. "Don't tie your hair up like that, you look like a hippy. I'll straighten it for you once I've showered." Before she could shut the door, Loki flung himself into her arms, hugging her tightly. "It's only hair, Christ," she muttered. He pulled back and smiled, planting a kiss on her cheek.

"I'm sorry about last night. I- I don't know why I just-"

"Was it him?" She interrupted. Loki straightened his back, looking down at her slightly. He remained silent. "I knew it," she muttered. "You're too hung up on him, Loki and you've known him for a day, I knew he would be a total wanker in person but-"

"He's the one who stopped me from doing it as well."

Natasha glance up at him, confused. "Really?" She shook her head. "Let's talk after I've showered, I really stink."

"Yeah, you do." Loki replied. She hit his arm playfully and pushed him out the way to close the door.

While he was waiting for Natasha, he decided to listen to some music. Instead of putting The Avengers on for once, he decided on something else. He grabbed his iPod, plugging it into his speakers. Music artists The Pretty Reckless Light Me Up Nothing Left To Lose. He settled down on his bed as the music sounded through the speakers, the smokey-raspy voice of Taylor Momsen floating around the room. He sang along quietly, flicking through a recent copy of NME. "Why do they always focus on Black Veil Brides?" He murmured. "They're not even good..."

The bathroom door opened and steam bellowed out; as it cleared, Natasha stood there with dripping wet hair wearing a red T-shirt and blue jeans. Loki grinned at her and passed her his hair dryer, watching as her hair dried quickly with the help of the appliance. Loki eventually plonked down beside her as she put it down, replacing it with a pair of straighteners. She switched them on, letting them heat up. "So," she started, "Tell me about last night with Tony Stark."

Loki grinned and rambled on about their discussion last night, going from talking about bad memories to calling him Anthony.

"Didn't I read somewhere he hates that name?" Natasha commented, smirking slightly.

"Yes; that's why I'm going to call him it." Loki muttered, grinning alongside.

When they were both ready they headed down for breakfast, surprised to see everyone down there already eating. Natasha sat down beside Clint who smiled at her and Loki slipped into a seat beside Tony. "Good morning, Anthony," he said, smiling. He poured a glass of orange juice and grabbed a box of Shreddies.

Tony glared at him. "I hate that name, you know."

Loki smirked at him. "Oh, I know." He lifted the box over his bowl and let the small squares fall into it.

Before Tony could make a remark, a young dark brown haired girl entered the room yawning, sitting down beside Loki. She glanced up at the table to see a whole band sat there. "Whoa," she muttered, "Where did you come from?"

Loki rolled his eyes. "Did you forget the Avengers were staying with us for a while?"

A glint of recognition shone in her eyes and she grinned at Loki. "Oh yeah! Sorry, you talked about endlessly so I just stopped listening. I didn't realise it was this week." Loki blushed slightly and Tony raised an eyebrow. Everyone stared at the girl, unsure of whom she was. "Oh, I'm Darcy by the way. Loki's sister and my mother's... Daughter. Obviously." She glanced over at Natasha, smiling at her. "Hey Nat, I didn't know you were staying with us either. When did you arrive?"

"I was here all of yesterday, Darce. You really don't pay attention, do you?" She smirked at the younger girl, watching a blush grow on her pale cheeks.

"Uh... Yeah, sorry," she muttered glancing at her empty plate. She quickly took a piece of toast from the table and nibbled on it, eager to turn the conversation away from her. Conversations began again between different people and Darcy eventually recognised the guy Loki was sat next to chatting with. She leaned over Loki and stared at him. "Hey! I know you," she said, taking a bite of toast and chewing it. She swallowed and continued, "You're the guy from my brother's wall."

"Darcy," Loki warned. Darcy looked up at him, grinning evilly.

"Oh, so many things I could tell him, Loki. Where shall I start?" She pondered for a second, putting her hand on her chin. "Did you know he sings to your posters?"

"Darcy." Loki was glaring daggers at her, his cheeks getting redder.

"Or how about how he writes his own songs about you?"

"I swear, if you don't stop-"

"Or how about when he goes in the shower he always shouts-"

"If you utter another syllable I will tell Natasha right now how much and how _long_ you've had your own obsession with her." Darcy stiffened and leaned back, her eyes wide. She huffed and folded her arms over her chest. Loki sat up triumphantly, wrestling the blush off his cheeks.

"You ruin my fun all the time. Can't I have just once where you don't use that threat?"

"Maybe grow some balls and tell her yourself and I won't be able to use it," Loki smirked, wiggling his eyebrows and eating a spoonful of Shreddies.

"I can't grow some balls, I'm a girl for fucks sake," she muttered. "I imagine you find it hard to grow them too."

"Wow, another girl joke? Damn, I'm so offended I might go and put get my dresses out." In Tony's mind, he could honestly see Loki having some dresses of his own tucked away. He grinned at the thought.

"Well you have got enough make up on to be a female prostitute, Loki," she teased, receiving his death glare.

"At least I look good in makeup," he teased back. She huffed and stood up, storming out of the room. He turned back to look at Tony's shocked expression. "What? I do," he rolled his eyes.

Tony laughed. "That's true, you do look good in it, if you lower the amount of eyeliner."

Loki smiled and winked at him. "Anything for you." He flirted, taking another spoonful of Shreddies.

"Anyway, heading back to the point... What do you shout in the shower?" Tony questioned, smirking and raising an eyebrow at the younger male. He watched Loki's face turn bright red and look away.

"Not important," he muttered. "We'll leave that anecdote for another time." He turned his attention to the whole group. "What are you all doing today?"

"We have a rehearsal at the O2 Arena." Thor pitched in. "You could come and watch us rehearse if you wanted? You could bring that other friend."

Loki's eyes shone brightly and he jumped up, pulling his phone from his pocket. "Perfect. I'll go call him."

* * *

They arrived at the O2, watching Peter stood outside it glancing at a poster advertising the Avengers. Loki called his name and he turned, his eyes widening to see the Avengers stepping out of cars. He eagerly walked over, looking at Loki first. "Damn, you sure weren't lying," he muttered. His eyes searched for Bruce's and his face lit up. Before he could talk to him they were all directed inside; Loki, Natasha, Peter and Pepper sat on chairs in the standing area below the stage, watching the band set up and get into place.

"When do I get to talk to him?" Peter pressed, whispering into Loki's ear.

"Later, Peter," Loki smirked, amused by the boys eagerness. "Can't you wait a few hours?"

"Sorry, but he's so fucking cool! I can't believe he's even in your house! I get to come round after this, right? Please?"

"Yes, alright, fine."

"Fuck yeah," Peter muttered, pulling his arm down in victory.

They were interrupted when they heard Tony's voice above them. "Hey Pep, can I do my new song at the end as like a teaser for the new album?"

"New album?" Loki, Natasha and Peter's eyes all widened.

Pepper thought for a moment. "Yeah, I guess. Only a few verses, okay? Don't give away too much, it'll hint too much at the new album."

Tony grinned. "I've changed it a bit, it's so much better now. More verses, better chorus. Probably one of the best songs I've ever written." He directed to the three fans before him, his eyes landing on Loki directly. He looked back at the band. "So, we'll go through the set list in order, decide when to take breaks to interact with the audience and when to head into the next song, and end with my acoustic version of my new song." He paused. "I want lots of glow sticks, got that Pepper?"

She rolled her eyes and waved her hand dismissively at him. "Whatever, just perform. Other people need to practise." She glanced at her watch. "When is the supporting act getting here? I thought we were supposed to see them too?" She shook her head sighing.

Tony stepped up to the microphone, a bass guitar in hand, a huge grin across his face. He glanced back at Clint, holding an electric guitar and Thor by his drums, over to Bruce by the keyboard. He nodded to them all. "Okay, first one is _Prepared To Do_."

A while later and they had gotten through the whole set list. Loki was amazed by the entire performance, still in shock he was there in the first place. He was casually chatting to Pepper Potts, their manager, when he saw Tony pick up a different guitar. Loki gave his attention back to the man on stage, which he had idolised from Day 1. Thor had gotten out some beers as passed them all around, everyone exiting the stage except Tony, all getting off to watch him perform. Tony grinned and let his fingers glide over the strings. "Okay, so here's to acceptance and all that shit," he said, retuning it. "Let's give it a go; I want feedback after, even though I know its perfection in song form." He cleared his throat and started strumming gently, Loki's eyes already hypnotised by it. Then, she started to sing.

_"She's so gorgeous, _

_She's so pretty, _

_But nothing feels the same,_

_He's so quiet and so witty _

_And he takes my breath away, _

_I'm so confused,_

_She's got everything _

_A man could ever ask for _

_Sun-kissed skin, golden hair_

_A body built by gods for sure_

_But when his body touches mine _

_I can't find the time to think of it anymore,"_ Tony glanced down at Loki, who was in a trance. His mouth hung open slightly, his big green eyes tracing Tony's face.

_"We're opposites, _

_we're supposed to be attracting, _

_but for some reason _

_I'm drawn to him _

_and he's so fucking distracting, _

_his big green eyes _

_and his pale skin is completely overwhelming,_

_I can't control what I'm delving into_

_Oh, the things I'd like to do,_

_to help me realise that I don't want you_

_Oh, the things I'd like to do,_

_To make you realise that I'm the one who_

_I'm the one who..." _

Tony let out a long guitar solo before his lips reached the microphone again.

_"One day you're gonna realise_

_That you were just a test_

_It's not doubt to me that_

_You'd turn to me and reply yes_

_Because I can't see you _

_Without seeing his face too."_

With the last few notes from the guitar hanging softly in the air, Tony stood up and bowed. Everyone silently stared up at him. "Jesus Tony, I didn't know you had feelings," Clint muttered, receiving a death glare from the lead singer.

Thor stood up and clapped. "I thought it was wonderful. Very different from our old stuff. Good job," he said proudly.

Tony grinned at him before glancing anxiously at the others. His gaze swept over Loki's still partially shocked face. He paused on it when a small voice sounded from said person. "I thought it was beautiful," Loki muttered, looking at his feet.

Tony smiled. "Thanks, glad you liked it."

Loki forced the small blush on his face to disappear, before glancing at Peter who was talking intensely to Bruce Banner about science. Loki grinned and glanced over at Natasha who also had her eye on Peter, before looking at Loki. He recognised the stern expression on her face and felt his face go white. She was still planning on telling Peter about what he had done a few days ago. "Please," Loki whispered to her, "Don't."

She shook her head, closing her eyes. "I promised I would tell him if you did it anymore, Loki, I can't keep anything from him. He's our best friend," she hissed back.

"Who is?" They turned to the chirpy voice of Peter Parker, now edging into their conversation. The other two glanced up to see the whole band standing around in a separate group chatting about songs and any changes they wanted to make. Natasha's eyes glazed over and she took Loki's arm. Loki hissed an pulled away, ignoring Peter's questioning gaze.

"You are, Peter," Natasha sighed. "I don't want to tell you but-"

"I did it again." Loki cut in, his voice hard and his eyes cold. He unbuttoned the buttons on his shirt sleeve and rolled it up, showing the fading red scars from no less than 3 days ago. Loki rolled it down at Peter's shocked and hurt expression and gave Natasha a hard glare. "Are you happy now?" Natasha said nothing, glancing back at Peter. He sighed and pulled Loki into a tight hug which he couldn't escape if he tried. Loki hissed again as he wrapped his arms around the American boy, his arm pressing into the others back. Peter leant against Loki's shoulder.

"Why do you do this to yourself?" The American muttered, trying not to cry.

"I just... I have to," he replied back, blinking rapidly to rid his eyes of unwanted tears. "The nightmares get to me."

Peter pulled back to whisper in Loki's ear. "I hate that you feel this way and I can't do anything to stop it," the words echoing around Loki's head, "I wish you would talk to me about these things without Natasha having to pry it out of you and tell me. I'm one of your best friends." He pulled away then, sitting back in his chair across from the two.

"I know," Loki sighed. "Listen, I'm gonna go outside for a bit."

"Want me to come?" Natasha offered, already knowing the reply.

"No thanks," Loki replied plainly. He stood up and leant towards her, kissing her cheek. "I forgive you for making me tell him. I am not angry with you."

He looked over at Peter and kissed his cheek as well, ignoring the blush slowly overtaking his face. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you." And then he walked away from them, out the door and into the fresh air.


End file.
